Joey Chestnut's return to Coney Island on the Fourth of July may come with somewhat of a wrinkle.

Chestnut was ineligible to compete in last year's Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest following a dispute stemming from his signing with Impossible Foods.

However, with weeks to spare, the sides all worked out a deal to get the GOAT of competitive eating back in Brooklyn on Independence Day.

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However, Chestnut will be joined by the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

In a press release sent to Fox News Digital, PETA said that "Tommy Tofu and his PETA pals will be right there at Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, distributing hundreds of tasty vegan hot dogs as they challenge hungry spectators to enjoy a free, flavorful Fourth that is also animal-friendly."

"Vegan hot dogs are delicious and kind, and who really wants to support slaughterhouses -- the word is enough -- by buying what comes out of them," PETA executive Tracy Reiman said to TMZ. "PETA encourages everyone to let freedom ring for all by leaving animals in peace this Fourth of July and beyond."

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Chestnut has actually dealt with a protester during the competition before. About halfway through the 2022 event, protesters rushed the stage — at least one wearing a Darth Vader mask — while carrying signs that read "Expose Smithfield Deathstar." Smithfield is a major food processing company out of Smithfield, Virginia, specializing in pork products. Nathan’s Famous is an all-beef frank. 

All with a cast on his leg from a ruptured tendon, Chestnut put a protester in a headlock and dropped him to the ground. He still managed to put down 63 dogs and win the event convincingly, although he claimed it cost him five wieners.

Last year, PETA planned to "bombard the competition's spectators" and brought a truck to encourage fans to go vegan.

Chestnut is, obviously, the overwhelming favorite for Friday's event, as he has won 16 of the last 17 contests he has competed in, only losing to Matt Stonie in 2015. His record is 76 dogs and buns.

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The Boston Red Sox are in Washington, D.C., for a three-game holiday weekend series against the Nationals, and they opted to be VIP tourists during their off day.

The Sox didn't have a game on Thursday, so several players took a trip to the White House to visit President Donald Trump.

Trevor Story, Justin Wilson, Abraham Toro, Romy Gonzalez, Connor Wong, Greg Weissert, Wilyer Abreu, Garrett Whitlock, Brennan Bernardino and Rob Refsnyder all shook hands with Trump in the Oval Office.

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"The team toured the White House today as part of their family road trip to D.C.," a team spokesperson said, via MassLive.

Normally, a team visiting the White House to visit the president is saved for celebrating a championship, but apparently, an exception was made.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora has been critical of Trump in the past - so much so, to the point that he opted out of visiting the White House in 2019 to commemorate the team's World Series title from the year prior.

During an interview on "The Mayor's Office" podcast back in January, Cora admitted that he skipped out on meeting Trump because he wanted to prioritize his home country of Puerto Rico. When the Red Sox visited the White House in May 2019, Puerto Rico was still recovering from the destruction of Hurricane Maria in 2017, and Cora wasn't satisfied with the federal government's response. 

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"One of the things that — it's not that I regret, but I think I should've been more clear — it was a visit to the White House," Cora said. "I have nothing against the President at that moment. It was Donald Trump at that moment, President Trump, but I felt me celebrating something at that stage, while [Puerto Ricans] were still suffering, it was bad. I didn't feel comfortable doing it." 

Cora says he would have felt "awkward" celebrating at the White House, given the state of his country at the time. 

"We are part of the United States," he continued. "What they do for us is amazing — the funding, all of that — but there was still work to do. And I felt very awkward, like, 'let's celebrate this at the White House' right while a lot of people suffered here. People took it like politics. No. My thing is sports and my family, right?"

Mookie Betts also opted to skip that year's visit, but he did attend the celebration earlier this year for the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Sox-Nats series begins at 11:05 a.m. on Friday.

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Jake Paul took a second win over Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. this week.

Paul earned an official WBA cruiserweight ranking after defeating the boxing legend's son over the weekend in a unanimous decision - on Wednesday. Just four days after the bout, Chavez Jr. was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Paul, as usual, talked plenty of trash ahead of the fight, and after the news of the arrest circulated, Paul dropped the mic one final time on Chavez Jr.

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After the news went around, Paul took to X to post an American flag emoji.

Paul's business partner, Valuable Promotions co-founder Nakisa Bidarian, said in an interview with Fox News Digital shortly after Chavez Jr.'s arrest that the team knew "zero" about Chavez Jr.'s situation prior to his arrest.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the arrest on Thursday, noting Chavez Jr. was being processed for "expedited removal from the United States."

Chavez Jr. was arrested in Los Angeles in January 2024 and later convicted of possession of an assault weapon, and manufacturing or importing a short-barreled rifle, according to the statement. He had a prior U.S. criminal conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol in 2012.

He also has an active arrest warrant in Mexico for his alleged involvement with the Sinaloa Cartel — trafficking firearms, ammunition and explosives, according to DHS officials.

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While Chavez Jr. entered the U.S. legally in August 2023 on a B2 tourist visa, it expired in February 2024. 

In April 2024, he filed an application for Lawful Permanent Resident status. 

However, his application was based on his marriage to a U.S. citizen who is connected to the Sinaloa cartel through a prior relationship with the now-deceased son of the infamous cartel leader Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, according to the statement.

In December 2024, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services made a referral to ICE that Chavez Jr. was considered "an egregious public safety threat." 

DHS said Chavez Jr. reentered the country in January through the San Ysidro port of entry. However, after "multiple fraudulent statements on his application to become a Lawful Permanent Resident," he was deemed to be in the country illegally and removable on June 27.

Chavez is a former WBC middleweight champion and the son of the boxing legend Julio Cesar Chavez, who held five different world titles in four different weight classes. 

Paul's win on Saturday resulted in him being ranked for the first time, coming in at No. 14 in the WBA cruiserweight rankings, now making him eligible for a title bout.

Scott Thompson and Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.

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